Natural gas moratorium in Easthampton Northampton nears settlement.

NORTHAMPTON -- Columbia Gas of Massachusetts is nearing an agreement with Holyoke Gas & Electric that would bypass a bottleneck in the region's network of  gas pipelines and end a two-year-old ban on new hookups in Easthampton and Northampton.Stephen H. Bryant, president of Columbia Gas of Massachusetts, said Monday that lawyers for Holyoke Gas & Electric are reviewing the agreement now. It would result in Columbia feeding gas to Holyoke Gas & Electric through a connection separate from the overburdened Northampton lateral line.Once Holyoke has a new way to get gas, Holyoke Gas & Electric would have less need of capacity on the Northampton lateral, freeing up capacity for Columbia to get more gas to Northampton and Easthampton.This would free capacity on the Northampton lateral to get more gas from a main pipeline in Southwick to Northampton and Easthampton.Speaking Monday following an event with U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal at Springfield's Union Station project, Bryant said he is very excited to get more gas into Northampton and Easthampton and start signing up new customers again."I want to get this done," he said.He didn't have a timeline for when the moratorium would be lifted once the agreement is in place, adding that there will need to be some pipeline construction to get the gas where it needs to go.Columbia Gas of Massachusetts imposed a moratorium on new service in Northampton and Easthampton at the end of 2014, saying that capacity on the Northampton lateral was running out.Separately, Berkshire Gas Co., also worried about pipeline capacity on the Northampton lateral, imposed moratoriums in the Hampshire County towns of Amherst, Hadley and Hatfield and the Franklin County communities of Greenfield, Deerfield, Montague, Whatley and Sunderland in late 2014 and early 2015.At the time, Berkshire Gas said the only solution to its supply problems would be the Kinder Morgan Northeast Energy Direct pipeline, then in the planning stages, to be built across the northern tier of Massachusetts and into New Hampshire.Today, Pittsfield-based Berkshire Gas is planning to implement one of two solutions: a compressed natural gas facility in Franklin County that could bring in gas by rail or truck or a 19-mile connector to bypass a bottleneck.Bryant said the Kinder Morgan project would never have helped Columbia Gas in Northampton and Easthampton. The proposed pipeline would have been too far north.Berkshire Gas communications manager Chris Farrell said all proposed solutions from Berkshire Gas and from Columbia would require approval by the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities and its siting committee. Just those approvals might take a year.Northampton Mayor David Narkewicz said he hopes that an agreement between Holyoke Gas & Electric and Columbia will be enough to at least begin an incremental process of lifting the moratoriums in Northampton and Easthampton. "This is an agreement that I'm very interested in," he said.If nothing is done to improve capacity on the Northampton lateral, a shortage of capacity will start to hurt Holyoke and Westfield as well, he said."It's just going to move south," Narkewicz said. "It's in the region's best interest that this important agreement between Columbia and Holyoke Gas & Electric is signed."The Northampton connection moratorium has stopped development of both businesses and housing or has forced builders to accommodate bulky propane tanks.Projects that have been adjusted include the Village Hill development at the old Northampton State Hospital site, a building on Old South Street and the Way Finders (formerly HAP Housing) and Valley CDC projects on Pleasant Street.Narkewicz said he knows Columbia Gas is working on the problem."They obviously don't want to be in the business of turning away customers," he said.Columbia Gas of Massachusetts Service Territory by Jim Kinney on Scribd